Rants, politics, and thoughts on politics, technology, life, and stuff from a generally politically conservative Baltimoron.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Maybe the Dyson isn't so expensive after all...

I wrote a post a few months back about my Dyson vac. I had trouble bringing myself to spend over $200 on a vacuum, and can't imagine spending the $499 that it normally sells for on it (mine was a refurb from woot). That being said, it is a great vac - easy to empty, great suction, and has survived the occasional "accidentally went to close to my underwear and tried to suck it up" incident.

But to put it in perspective, Lileks today has a scan of theSears Kenmore Powermate Vacuum from the 1973 Sears catalog. $189.99, which he says is $440 in today's dollars. For a vac that 1)is Sears brand 2)is avacodo green 3)is covered in fake woodgrain 4)uses a bag instead of the nifty Dyson opens-on-the-bottom canister and 4)unlike the Dyson, probably frequently loses suction.

People often forget that the price of consumer items has really dropped in the last few decades, while the quality has improved. $440 will buy you a hell of a vac today, and one that is quite a bit more aesthetically pleasing. Something to remember the next time you think the prices of consumer products are too high.

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About Me

Who am I? I am a 28 year old Baltimore County resident. I grew up in Central NJ. I went to college in Baltimore and ended up staying there afterwords. I work for that college in a Tech Support position. I also recently finished up my MBA at that same college. Hobbies include blogging, fooling around with computers, sleeping, selling crap on eBay and other venues, and yelling at the TV.
This blog is a mixture of the political and the personal. Politically I tend to be libertarian on social issues, conservative on fiscal issues, and hawkish on defense.